The Shining

She allowed Ullman, who barely came to the bulky shoulder of her fur coat, to take her arm and lead her away, presumably to his i

“Whooo!” Wendy said, smiling. “There's a dude who earns his money.”

“But he didn't like that lady,” Da

Jack gri

“What's flattery?”

“Flattery,” Wendy told him, “is when your daddy says he likes my new yellow slacks even if he doesn't or when he says I don't need to take off five pounds.”

“Oh. Is it lying for fun?”

“Something very like that.”

He had been looking at her closely and now said: “You're pretty, Mommy.” He frowned in confusion when they exchanged a glance and then burst into laughter.

“Ullman didn't waste much flattery on me,” Jack said. “Come on over by the window, you guys. I feel conspicuous standing out here in the middle with my denim jacket on. I honest to God didn't think there'd be anybody much here on closing day. Guess I was wrong.”

“You look very handsome,” she said, and then they laughed again, Wendy putting a hand over her mouth. Da

(the beak-man place)

where she had been happy. He wished he liked it as well as she did, but he kept telling himself over and over that the things Tony showed him didn't always come true. He would be careful. He would watch for something called Redrum. But he would not say anything unless he absolutely had to. Because they were happy, they had been laughing, and there were no bad thoughts.

“Look at this view,” Jack said.

“Oh, it's gorgeousl Da

But Da

Beyond the pool a graveled path wound off through baby pines and spruces and aspens. Here was a small sign he didn't know: ROQUE. There was an arrow below it.

“What's R-O-Q-U-E, Daddy?”

“A game,” Daddy said. “It's a little bit like croquet, only you play it on a gravel court that has sides like a big billiard table instead of grass. It's a very old game, Da

“Do you play it with a croquet mallet?”

“Like that,” Jack agreed. “Only the handle's a little shorter and the head has two sides. One side is hard rubber and the other side is wood.”

(Come out, you little shit!)

“It's pronounced roke,” Daddy was saying. “I'll teach you how to play, if you want.”

“Maybe,” Da

“Well if you don't like it, doc, you don't have to play. All right?”

“Sure.”

“Do you like the animals?” Wendy asked. “That's called a topiary.” Beyond the path leading to roque there were hedges clipped into the shapes of various animals. Da

“Those animals were what made Uncle Al think of me for the job,” Jack told him. “He knew that when I was in college I used to work for a landscaping company. That's a business that fixes people's lawns and bushes and hedges. I used to trim a lady's topiary.”

Wendy put a hand over her mouth and snickered. Looking at her, Jack said, “Yes, I used to trim her topiary at least once a week”

“Get away, fly,” Wendy said, and snickered again.

“Did she have nice hedges, Dad?” Da

“They weren't animals, Da

(They creep, Watson had said… no, not the hedges, the boiler. You have to watch it all the time or you and your f ambly will end up on the f uckin moon.)

They looked at him, puzzled. The smile had faded off his face.

“Dad?” Da

He blinked at them, as if coming back from far away. “They grow, Da

“And a playground, too,” Wendy said. “My lucky boy.”

The playground was beyond the topiary. Two slides, a big swing set with half a dozen swings set at varying heights, a jungle gym, a tu

“Do you like it, Da

“I sure do,” he said, hoping he sounded more enthused than he felt. “It's neat.”

Beyond the playground there was an inconspicuous chain link security fence, beyond that the wide, macadamized drive that led up to the hotel, and beyond that the valley itself, dropping away into the bright blue haze of afternoon. Da

“I'll get you that drink as soon as I can, doc. They're a little busy right now.”

“Sure, Dad.”

Mrs. Brant came out of the i

And in one of those flashes that sometimes came, he got a complete thought from her, one that floated above the confused, low-pitched babble of emotions and colors that he usually got in crowded places.

(i' d like to get into his pants)

Da

The man in the gray uniform closed the trunk and walked back to help her into the car. Da

He thought about asking his mother why Mrs. Brant might want the car-man's pants, and decided against it. Sometimes questions could get you in a whole lot of trouble. It had happened to him before.

So instead he squeezed in between them on the small sofa they were sharing and watched all the people check out at the desk. He was glad his mommy and daddy were happy and loving each other, but he couldn't help being a little worried. He couldn't help it.